(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of communications technology. More specifically, the present invention relates to monitoring the data content of multiple television channels.
(2) Description of Related Art
Current users of audio/video systems can view a broad spectrum of information including news broadcasts, sports events, etc. on a television set (TV). The same information shown on a TV can be recorded in a video cassette recorder (VCR) by the user. In most traditional televisions, the user can only watch one channel at a time, while in the more advanced picture-in-picture (PIP) televisions, the user can simultaneously watch two channels. In most of these traditional TVs, the user is typically limited to manually selecting channels and adjusting the audio volume associated with a channel. Even in the PIP television, the user still is limited to watching and listening to only one channel simultaneously.
To record a program in a VCR, the user is limited to either preprogramming the VCR to record a program using a time stamp to record the entire program without regards to the contents of the program, or manually setting record buttons on the VCR to record a program currently being watched by the user.
The proliferation of multimedia technology has enabled the incorporation of current TV technology into personal computers (PC) that allow the PC user to receive and display TV signals by incorporating a tuner and related TV circuitry. The multimedia PC could also be used to record TV signals. However, despite the new uses of TV technology, PC users who use their PCs as TV units still encounter the limitations imposed by traditional TVs (i.e., limited displays and sequentially viewing programs).
Furthermore, indiscriminately recording a program in a PC which normally does not include a VCR or equivalent recording register requires additional storage space especially if programs are recorded without regard to the contents of the program. The additional requirement for extra storage space for recording TV programs in these multimedia PC's can be very expensive since PC's typically utilize related expensive hard disk devices for bulk storage. Thus, it would be beneficial to efficiently utilize storage space needed to record a program being received by the PC.
To take advantage of the available audio/video technologies in a multimedia environment and permit monitoring multiple channels simultaneously and being able to discern information carried by each channel being monitored, a system is needed that will allow the user to capture and automatically display or record a video/audio signal based on the contents of the multiple channels.
Additionally, it is desirable to have a method and apparatus for monitoring for different types of information including numeric data, graphic image data and internet URL (Uniform Resource Locator) type data.